Utopian Uprising: Prisoner of the Mind
Page 22
Then he leans forward and steps fully over the border, and disappears.
The crowd gasps.
Iris blinks her eyes, trying to believe what she just saw. She glances back at the crowd, ensuring that they viewed the same thing. Everyone is frozen in disbelief.
The crushing silence all around them is broken by the sound of arriving police. They quickly begin to grab people and haul them away, but Iris stands still, staring at the spot Orion had been. She slowly steps closer, extending her hand like she may discover something invisible floating right before her.
Then as suddenly as he disappeared, Orion reappears. His feet land inside the Hivebeam and back into the city. His eyes momentarily drained of color. His expression blank and body relaxed.
“What just happened?” she utters as confusion races over her. “Where did…”
Taking her hand tight, pulling it close to his chest he gazes across the vast metropolis in front of them.
She stares at him, unable to understand what she witnessed. She’s awestruck until she turns back to the gathering police. “What do we do now?”
“We’ll have to run,” he replies.
Then the squeaking grate of an old rusty door grabs their attention. There, poking his head out of the shadows, Evo beckons them to follow. The distance to him equals the distance to the police. The sprint will be very, very close.
“Iris,” Orion says calmly. “Run.”
They sprint full speed straight at Evo. The police rally and angle to cut them off.
Seconds later, Orion and Iris disappear into the shadows and are gone.
…
A droning hum emanates through the hallway outside Hivemind. Techs scurry around like ants, moving in all directions as they prepare for shift change. The large holographic digital clock under the main entrance to Hivemind counts down, moments away from animation of the Prime Shift.
The snap of hard-soled shoes echoes off the floor and along the long, curved hallway leading to Hivemind. Techs duck into rooms to avoid the new Director.
The beautiful young secretary states in her brightest, most professional tone, “Welcome, Director…um, Dr. Burroughs! Day shift is scheduled to animate momentarily.”
Burroughs glides past her and into the observation room. The door slides shut behind him.
He approaches the large glass observation window looking into Hivemind. The enticing colors of the holographic models for ninety-nine wonderfully conditioned minds float on the glass in front of him like candy.
The brilliant glowing web above the Hiveminders disconnects, and one by one the Hivebeams linking each individual member dis-anchors from their foreheads.
Chair #1, Dyss, the man awarded the spot after Orion’s fall from grace, finally opens his eyes. The color seeps back, turning them brilliant blue, a stand out against his ebony skin.
He draws a deep breath to pull himself together. The straps recede, he sits up, and he swings his feet to the floor.
A tech hurriedly scurries over to intercept him. “Now that you’re awake, there’s someone here to see you.”
Dyss gruffly pushes the tech aside and exits past the rest of the ninety-nine.
> >><< <
The End.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Born and raised in the American Midwest, Brian G. Craft traveled the world as an artist, designer, and storyteller. An immersive artist, he journeyed from the deserts of Burning Man to the art rich penthouses of NYC, and from the enigmatic streets of Paris to the deep forests of Oregon.
Brian followed his passion to Los Angeles where he became a screenwriter. He expanded his storytelling to include novels and short stories so he could explore the many worlds of his imagination and bring them straight to his audience.
You can learn more about Brian and explore his stories at WWW.BRIANGCRAFT.COM